Guided waves can be defined as stress waves or elastic wave forced to follow a path defined by

the material boundaries of the structure. For example, when a beam is excited at high frequency,
stress waves travel in the beam along its axis away from the excitation source, i.e., the beam
‘guides’ the waves along its axis.

>> Guided waves can travel a long distance with little signal attenuation because these waves are
guided by the structural boundaries. Its applications to complex structures are often limited
because wave propagation characteristics can be complicated in structures with intricate
geometries.